UPDATE: New London, Minnesota, teen in UTV crash dies; brothers remain hospitalized

Jan. 10—Editor's note: This story has been updated since original publication to add information from New London-Spicer Schools and to update the fundraising total.

WILLMAR

— One of three New London boys in a UTV that collided with a pickup truck Sunday has died, and the others remain hospitalized.

The 15-year-old UTV driver, William John Dahl, died of his injuries, according to an

update made Wednesday morning

to the

Minnesota State Patrol

accident report. The other two boys have since been identified as well. Drew Wayne Dahl, 10, and Harrison Jeffrey Dahl, 11, were passengers in the Polaris Ranger driven by their brother.

According to a

Caring Bridge site

for the family, the younger boys remain hospitalized. Caring Bridge is a free web journal for families to share information about health events.

The boys' mother Lara Dahl wrote in a post dated Jan. 9 that "William went to be with Jesus at 5:26 this morning. He was surrounded by so much love. I truly believe he was treated at the gates of heaven with open arms. This kid, one we are so proud of. ... He was the best son, best brother, best friend anyone could ever have."

According to another post, the family decided to donate Will's organs.

Will Dahl was a student at New London-Spicer High School.

In a statement issued Wednesday,

the school district said, "It is very difficult for all of us to face the death of a young person, especially when it's someone we have cherished memories with. ... Asking for help can sometimes be challenging, but it should be viewed as courageous. Any students or staff members who need additional support may continue to contact our school offices. We have social workers and counselors available to help."

The NLS High School Student Council has organized Thursday, Jan. 11, as a day to wear camouflage or blaze orange in honor of Will and the activities he loved, according to the statement.

According to the family's Caring Bridge journal, a CT scan showed Drew Dahl had suffered a bruise and two small lacerations to his liver. He had his first round of physical therapy and was sitting up and eating. "He walked on his own to say his goodbyes to William and check on and hold Harry's hand," Lara Dahl wrote.

She also stated that Harrison is still being monitored by nurses and doctors, writing that he is a fighter. After a decrease in his sedation medicine led to some unwanted movement and increased swelling, he was put back under sedation and will have an MRI on Thursday morning.

In the Caring Bridge update, Lara went on to say that she and her husband, Mike Dahl, have "sobbed over the loss of our son and our family not ever being the same."

They also asked for prayers for their other son, Gage, who "has lost a brother and his best friend, his hunting and fishing partner."

She continued, "We live for those four boys. We have made it a point from day one that our family is always number one. We do everything together, and going forward this is going to be hard with our Will missing."

The family has been set up with temporary housing at a

Ronald McDonald house

as they wait for Harrison's recovery, according to Lara.

According to the charity's website, Ronald McDonald House programs are located near top children's hospitals to allow parents who are far from home to stay close to their hospitalized child.

An online fundraiser through

GoFundMe

has been started to help support the Dahl family and their medical expenses. As of Wednesday evening, nearly $124,000 had been raised for the family.

"We are amazed at all the support we are getting from our family, our close friends who are family, our community that we live in, our community that we work in, and complete strangers," Lara Dahl wrote on the Caring Bridge page. "We can't thank you enough for all the prayers, love and support people are showing our boys."

She also thanked first responders who were dispatched to the accident Sunday and the doctors and nurses who have been caring for the boys since their arrival at Children's Hospital in Minneapolis.

"The Children's nurses and doctors are some of the best I have ever seen," she wrote. "We have had the best care here, so compassionate, caring, and gentle to our babies. Answering all our questions, talking to us about each step and what we do next."

Lara Dahl wrote in one of the Caring Bridge posts that the entire family had gone out to pick up trail cameras and deer stands and walk some trails on Sunday. Once they were done, William, Harrison and Drew asked if they could drive the UTV back home, "something they had done dozens of times before," she wrote. The three brothers got in the UTV while she, Mike, and Gage traveled back home in their truck.

The crash was reported at 3:49 p.m. Sunday, after the UTV collided with a pickup truck at the intersection of 95th Street Northwest and Minnesota Highway 9, in Norway Lake Township.

The driver of the pickup truck, Matthew Leroy Anderson, 40, of Sunburg, was not injured in the crash. He was wearing a seat belt as were the two younger boys in the UTV.

Alcohol was not involved in the crash, according to the State Patrol. Road conditions were reported as snowy and icy at the time.